Staff

Writer

Questions

over paying school principals for summer work stalled

preliminary approval of the Fayette County school board's

proposed $114 million FY2000 budget Wednesday night.

The board

instructed Dr. John DeCotis, school superintendent, and

finance director Jim Stephens to take another look at the

two budget items for discussion, again Monday night at

7:30 p.m.

The

increase in pay for 24 principals comes from approval of

a 240-day work year for all district administrators last

August. The adjustment added 30 paid days to middle and

elementary school principals' working calendar and 10

paid days to high school principals' calendar. According

to one principal, the number of paid working days is

designated in her signed contract.

"Let's

put it off for another year," suggested board member

Woody Shelnutt. He estimated the move would cost at least

$322,000 if a planned 4 percent across-the-board pay

raise were figured into it as well.

"We've

never gotten paid for summer work; we've always just gone

up and done it," Juliette Babb, principal of Fayette

Middle School, told the board.

"We

approved it (240-day calendar) before the budget

developed," DeCotis reminded the board. "The

calendar was sent out to all administrators for this

year."

Chairman

Debbie Condon said she remembered talking about it,

adding, "In the interest of fairness, a year ago,

salaries were on the low end for principals." She

said principals were given a $75 per teacher bonus to

bring them more in line with area counties.

Board

member Mickey Littlefield cited the county's favorable

working conditions as a reason for not paying the area's

highest salaries. "It's a better place to

work," he said. But he added, "Principals were

led to believe that they're working a 12-month year. That

presents a problem."

After the

meeting, Condon said the board needs to ask for as much

information as possible before voting on the budget. She

agreed that the 240-day calendar is a good idea.

"The bottom line is that it's going to cost us a lot

of money," she said.

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